Blogging Against Racism Week

[sarahmichigan]

I've seen it noted in a few places that this is "Blogging Against Racism Week."

Of course, I think Racism is Bad. And I can come up with a fistful of personal anecdotes as well as statistics to counter anyone who says that racism is a thing of the past and isn't a problem today.

But there are so many issues where I just don't know what to think. Here are some issues I'm conflicted or confused about:

-Racism and humor. What's the difference between a joke about racism and a racist joke? Who's allowed to make jokes that are racially charged? Should white people lose their jobs over making racist jokes?

-Racism and "The N Word". For the most part, only white people who are rednecks (yes, I know this is a racially charged word as well- I come from redneck stock and think I'm allowed to use it) or blatantly racist use this term with any regularity these days. Should Blacks stop using it as well? Should there be MORE use of it to diffuse the charge of the word, kind of like diffusing other epithets like "bitch" or "slut" or "dyke"?

-How to talk about race. How do we start a dialogue about racism and race without ending up in accusations, shutting people down, and making people feel like they can't talk about it at all?

Maybe some of the blog posts I'll read this week will shed some light on one or more of those issues. I'm not sure if I'll post more about the topic or not; it seems like there are plenty Guilty White Liberals posting about race already.

Comments

[http://users.livejournal.com/_scarlet_ibis_/]

Also, what about "reverse racism", which is really just racism... but we're not allowed to acknowledge it.

[sarahmichigan.livejournal.com]

I don't like the term "reverse racism" because it implies there's a proper direction for racism. :)

But, yeah, I know what you're getting at. I think it falls into my third category (i.e. 'How can we talk about racism without accusations or shutting people down?')

[bernmarx.livejournal.com]

There is a valid argument to be had that, in the United States, only whites are "racist," but that argument depends highly on how "racism" is defined. Using the simple dictionary definition, that racism is making negative assumptions about people based solely on the color of their skin, yes, of course blacks (and latinos and other minorities) can be racist. But in conversations on racism, there's frequently a more powerful definition at play: Racism is (in that view) using social power and traditional attitudes to make sure that certain privileges stay with people of a particular skin color. From that perspective, it's much less clear that blacks can be racist (although, to rebut myself, it's not impossible, depending on what "certain privileges" we're talking about -- certain members of the various "oppressed" classes have learned over the last decades how to leverage SWAMP* Guilt to get special treatment).

* Straight White Anglo Male Protestant, my own acronym.

only whites are "racist," but that argument depends highly on how "racism" is defined

[sarahmichigan.livejournal.com]

Just to clarify, most minorities who make that argument say it's possible for a racial minority to be "prejudiced" but not "racist" because "racist" implies that the person so named has the power and/or privilege in that context.

Re: only whites are "racist," but that argument depends highly on how "racism" is defined

[bernmarx.livejournal.com]

Sure, clarification accepted. :)

[stacycat69.livejournal.com]

Using most definitions of "isms," reverse racism is not actually a fact.

The way we describe in it sociology is that there is prejudice, which is someones thoughts, there is discrimination, which is actively doing something discriminatory, and there is racism, which is an institutional power.

There are two great books out there. The first is "Racism without Racists" by Eduardo Bonilla-Silva. He describes how people perpetuate racist thoughts without thinking that they are "racist." The second is "Silent Racism" by Barbara Trepagnier, which states that everyone is racist, and people just need to learn what they can to try to minimize the institutional impact.

Until people can actually listen to one another, nothing will be acomplished. And, until people realize that racism is truely institutional, nothing will be done.